Democrats choose Milwaukee to host 2020 national convention

Milwaukee will host the 2020 Democratic National Convention, the party said Monday.

Democratic National Committee chairman Tom Perez said the event is scheduled to take place July 13-16, 2020, in the largest city in Wisconsin.

“I’m grateful for every finalist city for being a part of this process with us — now let’s get ready for 2020,” he tweeted.

Milwaukee beat out Houston and Miami for the convention. It will be the first time Milwaukee has hosted either party convention.

The convention will be held at the Fiserv Forum, the home arena of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks. Team Vice President Alex Lasry, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett and Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Wis., led the effort to bring the convention to Wisconsin, a state President Donald Trump narrowly won in 2016.

In a statement Monday, Lasry said he was excited to play host to the convention.

“Thank you to everyone who worked so hard to make this possible. Milwaukee is about to reintroduce itself to the country in a big way!” he tweeted.

The event will mark the first time in more than a century that Democrats will convene in a Midwest city other than Chicago. The 2016 Democratic National Convention provided a $230 million economic boost for Philadelphia. The 2020 Republican convention will be held in Charlotte, N.C.